Texas not that different from other states (Northeast)

[turf3]

Originally Posted by eastriver

Parts of I-10 into and beyond Boerne are very much evocative of I-78 outside of Newark.

Well, there's one stretch of the New Jersey Turnpike that felt just like Interstate 45 going into North Houston - five or six lanes wide on each side with almost all the traffic 18-wheelers going about 90 miles an hour, as flat as a table and as straight as a string.

[KathrynAragon]

Oh come on, OP. I moved from Georgia to Texas and it was a bit of a culture shock.

Every US state is different. But of course, we all speak a common language (well, most of us anyway) and we have chain stores and restaurants and some of those are nation wide, so yes, you will see some similarities. But you will also see regional chains and locally owned businesses that aren't outside a particular state or region, and that includes Texas.

And of course, Texas terrain - well, heck, it's not even the same in various parts of Texas - it's a lot different than the east coast.

[NorthTexasGuy]

Originally Posted by turf3

People were not riding horses in the major cities in 1978, either. I was there. Yes, there were a few riding stables still hanging on here and there, but I can guarantee you the only time you would see someone riding a horse down the street in Dallas in 1978 would have been a mounted police officer on crowd control duty, or in a parade.


And Texans know that the house used for exterior shots in "Dallas" is about 25 miles from downtown Dallas, in Parker or Wylie or Murphy (can't remember which municipality off the top of my head). It certainly isn't characteristic of any house in the actual city of Dallas, not even back in '78.


I remember at one point there was some TV show that purported to be about "Mesquite, Texas" which showed tumbleweeds drifting down the main street of Mesquite. Obviously the producers were so caught up in their fantasies of what Texas is that they couldn't even be bothered to look at a map of Dallas to find out that Mesquite is a close-in suburb of Dallas, filled with subdivisions, strip malls, and industrial parks.


And don't forget the saguaro cacti, never mind that there's not a saguaro cactus within 400 miles of Texas.

Great points👍

[Sweden America]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

Oh come on, OP. I moved from Georgia to Texas and it was a bit of a culture shock.

Every US state is different. But of course, we all speak a common language (well, most of us anyway) and we have chain stores and restaurants and some of those are nation wide, so yes, you will see some similarities. But you will also see regional chains and locally owned businesses that aren't outside a particular state or region, and that includes Texas.

And of course, Texas terrain - well, heck, it's not even the same in various parts of Texas - it's a lot different than the east coast.

We have all different opinions and perspective, and although you have a point with regional differences; overall, it was not that different.

[lonestar2007]

Originally Posted by Sweden America

We have all different opinions and perspective, and although you have a point with regional differences; overall, it was not that different.

So, why not end your comment with "not that different to me"?

[TexasRedneck]

Originally Posted by Sweden America

We have all different opinions and perspective, and although you have a point with regional differences; overall, it was not that different.

Tell ya what.......walk into a gun store up there and ask what you can buy and take with you today. Or, ask what their state income tax rate is.....or how many freezing days per year. We drive further between major metro areas than they do crossing the state - we're even in two time zones!

But, more importantly, we always treat folks with respect - even when they don't have a cotton-pickin' idea of what they're talkin' about.

Have a nice day, suh!

[Westerner92]

Many smug Northern Europeans love a chance to paint America with a broad brush I've noticed. I really have to question your observation skills if you thought even the places you visited within Central Texas were the same. Central Texas is an interesting mix of Hispanic, Upland Southern, and German influences, and San Antonio, Austin, and Fredericksburg are the three respective nodes of those influences.

I imagine a lot of your impressions were shaped by the prevalence of midcentury modern architecture and only visiting the touristy places. Both of those are the same no matter where in the world you are.

Even from a superficial standpoint, though, ranch houses aren’t found anywhere in the northeast quadrant of the US. New Southern architecture isn’t found anywhere outside the South. And limestone/cedar building materials are very rare outside of central Texas. Texas is one of the only places that has frontage roads along urban freeways, and it’s the only place I’ve seen with horizontal signal heads. Houston uses concrete for roads more than almost anywhere else in the world. Texas is also one of the few places in the US that was originally plotted with Spanish land grants, so many of the cities and much of the rural land area are laid out with a system that blends natural features with a grid that roughly follows the the bearing of the nearest river.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Sweden America

We have all different opinions and perspective, and although you have a point with regional differences; overall, it was not that different.

Yes, you're right - it's your opinion that it's not that different. I disagree. So there's that.

[MustermannBB]

Originally Posted by Sweden America

I always thought of Texas being very different from rest of America, especially from the Mid-Atlantic Northeast. I went to San Antonio, Austin (incl. drove thru the suburbs) & drove thru Fredricksburg and the Hill Country. To be honest not much different than driving in Upstate NY and the Northeast. Same roads, same people (except Southerners being friendlier and the cool Southern accent), but the famous BBQ can also be found elsewhere, same roads, and basically not that much different. I expected Texas to be very different but it wasn’t really. I could have been like I said in anytown, USA. One thing I noticed though was the beautiful Texas flags everywhere unlike any other state I’ve been to (reminded me being in Quebec province where Quebec flags are flown sometimes more than the Canadian).

My favorite was San Antonio... lots of things to see/do, and that river walk just breathtaking

Hmm. I can't really think of a city in Upstate NY, that I would consider similar to San Antonio for example.
Also let's not forget, in the end it is still the same country.
I saw in another thread that you are from Europe. Perhaps you look at it from that perspective. Traveling to another region inside Europe can make for very glaring differences quickly but of course that is (most of the time) because it is a different country.